Tag: public safety

JAN 10 • Thank you so much for your fair and balanced coverage of the 15th Annual IDTEVASW. Since 2012 SWOP and SAFE have strived to stand up and speak out in Philly on issues specific to stigma and gratuitous violence against sex workers. Folks are always amazed at how hard and painful this event is to do, yet in the end how truly blessed we are to be able to come together to do it. Many households in most areas of Greater Philadelphia, if not all of PA, are touched somehow by this issue. Talking about sex work and prostitution is hard. Living in shame and silence is harder. D/17 is not fun, though it is full of love. Truly. We are here because we have been there, and we care. Our voice is their voice. Thank you for covering the memorial. Words cannot even express the gratitude I feel right now. Philly is proving we got LOVE!

The date of December 17th was selected for the observance because it was on that date in 2003 that Gary Leon Ridgeway, the notorious Green River Killer, was sentenced for his crimes. “Between July of 1982 and January of 1998 Ridgeway was responsible for the deaths of dozens of women and girls in King County, Washington, the county that includes the cities of Seattle and Tacoma. Many of his victims were prostitutes and others marginalized by society, such as runaways. Ridgeway was sentenced to 48 consecutive life terms for his crimes plus 480 additional years; a plea agreement eliminated the possibility of the death penalty. The first International Day to End Violence against Sex Workers was observed on the day he was sentenced and utilized art as sublimation through the conflicting emotions of relief, grief, anger and fear.

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner Inauguration: Today we start the long road towards empowering and protecting some of our most vulnerable witnesses and survivors: immigrants that lack legal status so that they like other vulnerable groups - young people, elderly people, sex workers - can participate in the criminal justice system that is
there to protect them. Today we trade fear for sanctuary.

The HIV Criminalization Sourcebook includes the text, related case law, and analysis of statutory provisions that:
1. criminalize non-disclosure of HIV status or exposure of a third party to HIV;
2. make exceptions to confidentiality and privacy rights of PLHIV;
3. provide for sentence enhancements for PLHIV convicted of underlying crimes such as prostitution and solicitation; and
4. require sex offender registration for PLHIV.

Eris Vayle and M. Dante joined Representative Elizabeth Edwards with public television hostess Elizabeth Kopp and Granite Pathways Ryan Fowler for a live stream discussion on Public Safety & Harm Reduction after the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee had a subcommittee meet to work on HB 287, a bill retained by the Legislature for further work, with the fascinating title of “Establishing a Committee to Study Decriminalizing Sex Work.”

Global Women’s Strike testified in support of a bill to decriminalize prostitution in New Hampshire. A Sub Committee of the NH Legislature agreed to study the issue and are meeting on September 5. Please see Action Alert from the US PROStitutes Collective and write or call sub-committee members in support of decriminalization!

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Recent Posts: SWOP Behind Bars (SBB)

SWOP Behind Bars is strongly opposing Florida Senate Bill FL 540 (FL SB 540). The website for this bill is https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2019/00540. The sponsor is Senator Lauren Book, who attempted a bill in 2018 that included some portions of this one. An identical House version has also been introduced, but this toolkit currently focuses on the […]

Florida Senate Considers Creating Prostitution Registry: Florida Senate Bill 540 with the Orwellian title “Human Trafficking” would create a registry for people found guilty of the loosely defined crime of “soliciting, inducing, enticing, or procuring” another to commit “prostitution, lewdness, or assignation.”
Such people, once prosecuted would be added to a registry entitled “Soliciting for Prostitution Registry.”

About this essay: Against FOSTA/SESTA was chosen as the First Place finalist in Slixa’s call for entires on the subject of FOSTA/SESTA. In addition to a cash award for the author, this designation also came with a matching contribution to a provider-focused service organization of the author’s choosing. Congratulations to Lucy Kahn. Slixa is proud to support SWOP – Los Angeles in their thoughtful and important work.

Currently & formerly incarcerated survivors have stated again and again how important letters of support are to their well-being. Letters are also important strategies to build relationships and organizing coalitions across prison walls. Here’s a basic guide for how to send letters to incarcerated people. ​This document is adapted from a prisoner letter-writing guide created […]

NSWP on EMPOWER Thailand: A panel from ‘Mida Tapestry’, created by migrant sex workers to compliment the ‘Hit and Run’ sex worker research project. The tapestry was first publically displayed at the 12 February, 2012, launch of the ‘Hit and Run’ research initiative in Bangkok, Thailand. Image attributed to EMPOWER Foundation.